Blind date

EVERY week we send a couple out on a blind date and ask them to report back afterwards. This time, 47-year- old Phil Sheridan went for dinner at James Martin, Manchester, with Lesley roberts, 52, from rossendale in Lancashire.

Divorcee Phil is an architect technician and lives in Bolton with his two teenage daughters. Lesley, also divorced, works as a personal carer, and is a mother of two and grandmother of one.

Lesley, 52, says:

WHEN I got married in my 20s, my husband was six years older than me —but I wouldn’t go for that age gap now, because men in their 50s are boring.

They just don’t have any oomph. Once they get past 48 they seem to turn into Victor Meldrew.

The problem is they are all up for a pipe and slippers, and I’m not. I just decided that I wasn’t going to go down without a fight. When I started going grey, I went blonde. I really like to make an effort with my appearance.

I’m not a nervous or shy person, and know I can talk to anyone, so was looking forward to the date. It’s been a couple of years since my last one so I tried really hard and got my hair done.

When Phil walked in, it looked like he had just come straight from work. But one thing I have learned is not to judge a book by its cover.

We chatted all night and had a real laugh — but there was no chemistry. You can usually figure that out quite quickly.

He was good company, and seems to be a really nice fella but he just wasn’t for me. He wasn’t really on my level.

At one time near the end of the night, we got talking to some people outside the restaurant and I was chatting to a guy. There was nothing untoward but Phil showed a bit of greeneyed monster.

Maybe he felt awkward or was trying to protect me — but I wasn’t in any danger at all.

I was in my 30s when I divorced, but have been single for two years after having my heart broken.

That experience made me realise that I’m too nice, and far too gullible. I’ve got myself back on my feet, and if love finds me that would be just brilliant!

But at this stage of my life I need someone who is independent. I’ve set the bar high and I don’t want someone I have to look after — unless they show they can look after me first.

I did have a lovely evening. The restaurant was excellent and the staff were great. In the end they had to kick us out as we were the last two people there! We went and had another drink.

Afterwards, I just shook his hand and gave him a hug as I didn’t want to lead him on, so there was no point in giving him my number.

Overall, the date was a really positive experience, and you have to give these things a go. You never know, Phil could have been my knight in shining armour.

At the minute I feel blessed with what I have, my little home, my new grandchild, so if I find love it’s a bonus.

When you get to my age, you know what you want — I feel like I’ve just found the real Lesley again after a long time being someone’s wife or girlfriend.

I’m not giving that up unless it’s really right.

Phil seemed like a genuine and caring guy, and would make a lovely partner for someone, but just not me.

LIKED? He looked after himself, and was independent. REGRETS? None. COFFEE OR CAB? Coffee but not romance. VERDICT 7/10

Phil, 47, says:

WHEN I saw Lesley i n the restaurant, I thought that she was attractive — and I really loved her smile.

She is very chatty and easy to be around, so we relaxed quite quickly. In fact we had a good laugh, talking about family, the music festivals we’ve both been to and so on.

That said, we come from very different backgrounds, and don’t have many shared experiences. I think that does make a difference to the way that you get on with someone.

The restaurant was very nice, and we had some prosecco, then wine and steaks.

Lesley is quite expressive and likes to wave her arms around, so the poor thing ended up spilling a Jack Daniels all over her white top. But she took it in her stride and laughed it off.

I’m not very good at flirting or recognising if someone is flirting with me — I prefer to be pretty straight up and would tell someone if I liked them.

Maybe she liked me, but I don’t think there was any chemistry. We got on really well, though.

After dessert we went on somewhere for another drink, because although i t became apparent we weren’t going to have any sort of romance, Lesley is great company and a bit of a live wire!

It was a brilliant evening — I’ve done a bit of internet dating, but have never been on a blind date before.

After 11 years of marriage, I divorced ten years ago and have had a few relationships since then — the longest lasting about three years.

It was easier dating when I was younger, but when I hit a certain age it all slowed down a bit.

I’d like to meet someone openminded and creative, who isn’t too serious — ideally someone who enjoys music and festivals like I do.

I play tennis pretty regularly, as well, and am on three different teams for my local club.

The end of the evening was a bit of a disaster, sadly, because Lesley hadn’t looked up the times for her last tram back to the place where she lives.

She assumed they ran through the night, but they stopped at midnight so we had to try to find a taxi within her budget.

In the end I offered to give her some money for the fare. So unfortunately I was at the cash machine when her cab pulled up and had to say goodbye when she was inside — so we never actually had a chance to swap phone numbers.

It was a fun evening, but there was no romance. LIKED? Very personable and could chat to anyone and everyone. REGRETS? None, but she’s not the one for me. COFFEE OR CAB? Cab. VERDICT: 7/10

Men turn into Victor Meldrew once they get past 48 She jumped in a cab so we never got to swap numbers